Wednesday, October 12, 2011

In class last week, we talked about making copies of Artists work for the purpose of understanding how they group their values, used color and handling of paint... etc. Nothing works so well as a diligent study of a painting you wish to understand better. You may think you 'get it' by viewing a good print but it's surprising how much deeper your understanding will be when you copy it. Many years ago, I made a copy of Dr FitzWilliam Sargent, John Singer Sargent's father. Sargent's painting is a bit of a caricature when compared to his oeuvre. But it's a great example of his directness in application of paint. I painted my copy alla prima (no drawing prep, all at once) to keep in the spirit of the original. I was surprised how simple his large shapes were conceived, and held, through to completion of the study.

So, find a good print of a painting you love and break it down, understand it on a much deeper level. Then bring that new found knowledge into your own work!

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

I hope everyone had a fun and productive summer! If there are any paintings you are particularly proud of, bring them in. Has anyone done 100 heads? Here's another white sheet on a chair from many years ago, and a swollen stream from the hurricane last week. See you this Monday!

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

I mounted some more of the Italy sketches from my recent trip. I may work on them in the studio and/or use them for a larger paintings but for now they are just as I made them in the field. I still have a bunch more to mount, about 28 in all. I'm doing it little by little, when there's some more I'll post them. Hope everyone is getting their summer sketches done. You should have several by now.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Several weeks ago my students asked what they could do to stay in practice this summer. My first answer was do 100 heads. Later, I realized there isn't even a hundred days before we start again. So, here is an example of something I do when I don't have time to work on something more ambitious, or just to have fun. I throw a white sheet on a chair, and I paint it. I try not to get to involved in the nuance or make the painting special. I just try to quickly capture the colors, values, and shapes that I see. Above are 3 examples so you can see how gruff the handling is. It isn't important to articulate the folds perfectly, just make precise notes of color that are the right shape. Capturing the shapes is very important, make shapes with your brush strokes. And then do some articulation on top of those. These should be done quickly- 1 hour 2 at the most. Don't think finished painting, think, are the colors honest, are the values relative, are the shapes strong. So go paint! And have a fun summer.

Monday, May 30, 2011

We had a great model in class last week. She is worth a better effort then I was able to summon, but here it is anyway. The Castilione del Bosco landscapes are next on my mind. I will post them as soon as I glue them on supports.